Steven Universe fic

part 5 Chapter One: Back to the Start

Aquamarine's ship docked on a familiar planet, its core had been almost completely harvested for gem production, and was held together by the force of a gem made reactor in its center, the cracked and arid surface of the planet erupted with dust as the saucer pulled out its landing gear, teetering in the air before resting on the ground.

Aquamarine opened the hatch, stepping out onto the ramp of the ship with a prideful grin on her face. She was winning. Steven fell hook, line, and sinker for her perfectly set trap, and she had successfully roped Spinel into her plans.
Her master genius was too brilliant. She turned back, beckoning her companions off of her ship before flitting up into the air.

"All in a day's work, I'll have Steven begging for mercy on his knees when I rule! If I don't shatter him first!" She cackled as she rose through the air.
Antarcticite exited next, clicking her claw like fingers together boredly.

"I just want this over with." She muttered to herself, not looking at the fluttering gem as she did victory laps around her ship. The Topaz fusion stepped out next, looking rather displeased and uncomfortable by the whole endeavor, the two unfused and allowed Spinel to nervously enter the walkway. The pink gem turned back, looking at the Pearl that had stayed silent the entire ride.

"You can go first." She said softly, gesturing for the Pearl to exit. The gem jumped, acknowledging the offer as some sort of order and quickly padded out of the ship, leaving Spinel as the last to exit.
She gazed around at the planet they had reached, its familiarity burning images in her skull.

"This is…"

"Beta 472," Aquamarine remarked, gliding down to hover next to the gem. "This was the first place you came after Steven's awful transmission." She laughed, flitting ahead of the group and gesturing broadly at the decrepit place.

"You were practically begging for us to help you," she paused, turning away with a sly grin on her face, "or, was it the other way around?"

Spinel lowered her head in shame as she recalled the last time she had been on the planet. It was the closest colony to the garden, she had just reformed, and wildly upset that pink had left her. In her rage, she made a promise to Aquamarine, to kill Steven.
But things turned out differently.

The whole place set her at unease, it was as if everything was being rewound, she was right back where she started, heartbroken on a desolate colony full of gems who hated the new order.  

She sheepishly followed the troupe into what looked like a shambled hut, but it was markedly better in appearance than the rest of the gem buildings around.

"Alright, next order of business." Aquamarine quipped, landing on what looked to be a holographic map, it distorted as her feet touched it.

"Now that we have our friend back." She winked at Spinel, raising a hand as if to congratulate her on her betrayal. "We have a way into the Diamonds, I've been tracking their movements-"

"I've been tracking their movements." Antarcticite interrupted casually, causing Aquamarine to simmer at her words.

"And we know they have fortified this part of Centauri 42," she pointed at a small blip on the map, on the outskirts of a planet's third moon. "With quartz soldiers, there is consistent back and forth of Obsidian ships, and," she glanced at her comrades with glee. "Obsidian machinists."

"So that's where we're going to hit next, we need our hands on these weapons, and this is our best bet."

The Topaz's glanced at each other, displaying visible discomfort at the difficulty of the mission. Antarcticite simply yawned, as if she was done with the whole thing already.

"How do you suppose we get in there without getting caught?" Antarcticite remarked, still not looking at the map, or Aquamarine's strained smile.
Aquamarine forced herself to relax, looking back at her new accomplice.

"Simple, all we need is our friend."

Spinel looked up, feeling the eyes of the gems now on her, she looked around in confusion.

"What do you mean? I don't know how to get in there?! I've never even been there!" She replied in shock.

Aquamarine clasped her hands together and fluttered toward the pink gem, puffing out her cheeks in a small frown.

"You don't mind helping us, do you?" Her frown turned into a wicked smile that spread across her face, "after all, you do owe us at least this."
Spinel stared at the suddenly terrifying little gem, before lowering her head in submission.  

"Okay, I guess I can help."

"Perfect!" Aquamarine clapped her hands, pleased with the pawn's response, before flitting back to her war map.

"We will leave in 28 hours."